


Got Your Back

by redjaded (timeheist)



Series: The Odessan Legacy [1]
Category: Star Wars Legends: The Old Republic
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-03-28
Updated: 2016-03-28
Packaged: 2018-05-29 18:39:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,900
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6388732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timeheist/pseuds/redjaded
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When they’d first met, Cassandra Romus had thought that Lenn Teraan was no different to any of the other nobles on Alderaan. Rich, boring and only interested in how the galaxy could help <i>them</i>.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Got Your Back

**Author's Note:**

> I've taken some obvious liberties with in-game dialogue, the order of events on Alderaan, and whether or not Lenn's sister is present. If you read any more of the stories I plan to write about my smuggler, you'll probably notice a couple of other places where I've gone "nice canon, but my elaborate Legacy demands I bend it".

Selling a severed head to a museum curator with more money than sense grew very old, very quickly. As far as Cassandra Romus was concerned, every moment she spent on Alderaan was a moment more than she could stomach. The pomposity was stifling. Though her work on the planet was far easier than having to fight through three different gangs on Coruscant or pissing off Hutts on Nar Shadaa, she felt more at home in the hustle and bustle of crime than she did in the political intrigue of Alderaan’s many Houses. Nobility, rather than cartel hierarchy, reminded her too much of a life that she’d rather leave behind, and her unrest showed in the shortness of her temper and her willingness to draw her blaster on any of Skavak’s mercenaries that looked at her funny.

Just why she’d landed on the planet expecting Risha’s latest errand in the search for Nok Drayan’s treasure was a mystery to her. It was never ‘just one delivery’. ‘Just one delivery’ inevitably became ‘could you do this for me before I give your payment’ which in turn often ended in life-threatening situations. On the last planet, she’d wound up in the hospital getting some half-researched vaccine for the rakghoul plague stuck in her just in case any of the buggers had managed to bite her. Alderaan was, of course, no different, but where she’d hoped that chasing down the hyperdrive that Skavak had stolen would be the worst of her troubles she hadn’t counted on the political red tape that came from inadvertently being drawn into the Houses’ business in the process.

There was one ray of light in the endless diplomacy, and that was Lenn Teraan. When they’d first met, Cass had thought that he was no different to any of the other nobles on the planet. Rich, boring and only interested in how the Republic - or the Empire, whichever it was - could help them. And then he’d turned out to be poor, interesting, and yes, self-absorbed, but not entirely so. The flirting had come naturally; she needed information, and what better way to butter him up? What she hadn’t expected was to grow so fond of him. Lenn was naive, but he wasn’t stupid, and his dreams hadn’t yet been snuffed out. He was cute, too. Smiling eyes...

Which was why she’d stolen a speeder and rushed half way across Alderaan to save him from certain blaster-y death at the hands of House Baliss’ prize duelist. She’d left Corso and Bowdar to stall House Alde, and could only hope that Risha could work her magic. Cass wasn’t a broker, she wasn’t a noble. She was a smuggler, and a scoundrel. That was the life she had chosen for herself more than a decade ago.

“Just in time.”

The heavy, gilded doors cracked as Cass kicked them open, blaster in hand. A servant - one of House Organa’s - froze behind her, mouth open and hand raised in a wordless protest. The twilek was completely ignored as the armoured gunslinger turned around to face the abrupt interruption, outrage clear on his face. Cass narrowed her eyes, powering forward as Lenn hurried to his feet with obvious relief, chuckling awkwardly.

His eyes found Cass’ across the room, full of the words he couldn’t say.

“We were,” Lenn cleared his throat. He was smiling cordially enough, but Cass could see his hands shaking as he pushed himself up from the table, looking from duellist to smuggler. “Ahem, bout to start without you.”

“House Teraan’s champion _finally_ arrives...!”

The duellist looked down his nose at Cass, no doubt judging not only the colour of her skin but also her ample bosom and heavy-set thighs. Risha had filled her in on his history on the journey from the Museum. House Baliss was apparently neutral in the War, and Xin was their political shining star. Apparently he had won several duels to the death in his career, each of them with a single shot, which explained why Lenn - who had mentioned his sheltered upbringing on one of their meetings - needed a champion at all.

Xin Balish was a well-built and tall man, with short brown hair accented by well-trimmed sideburns and a stringy moustache. He had bushy eyebrows above narrowed eyes and a clear disdain for everybody else in the room, but especially Cass. His lip curled as he realised she was chiss, and he looked about to say something derogatory before thinking better of it. Instead, he sniffed and turned his back on the newcomer, gesturing absently at her as he addressed Lenn once again.

“Is this blue-skinned Imperial slut surely the best you could do? How far House Teraan has fallen, to hire foreign mercenaries and thieves.”

“This blue-skinned _lady_ ,” snapped Cass, taking a step forward and freeing her blaster from its holster beneath her coat, “is far better than you could ever do.”

She couldn’t help but grin at the double-entendre, and noticed the corners of Lenn’s mouth turn up too. For his part Xin Balish turned a rather unattractive shade of beetroot as he adjusted his layered robes. “Inform your simple-minded servant she shouldn’t speak.” Xin faced Cass lazily, sneering. He still failed to meet her eyes, and her fist clenched unconsciously around the grip of her blaster. “I have no compunction about killing your _second_ first. After all, ridding the galaxy of another chiss would probably be doing the Republic a fav-”

Cass didn’t let him finish. Without hesitation she had drawn her blaster, thumbed the safety and shot him squarely in his left shoulder. She wasn’t certain she’d actually _intended_ to shoot him, but the man had stumbled backwards, grasping his bloody shoulder with a look on his face that was so incredulous it was almost laughable. Cass realised she didn’t have it in her to feel guilty.

“You - you filthy _mongrel_!” Xin’s voice broke as the blood seeped between his fingers, staining his khaki green coat. “How dare you violate the rules of noble combat?”

He charged forward, pushing his Lenn out of the way as he did so. He kept one hand pressed against his bleeding shoulder and with his free hand, struck Cass hard across the jaw. Anger flashed in his eyes, his nostrils flaring, but Cass stood her ground, blaster at her side. She had bitten her lip at the blow, and could taste blood on her tongue. It was hot, and salty, and her face burned where he’d back-handed her. She wondered idly if it was going to bruise.

“The duel hadn’t even started!”

“How about now?”

The force of the second shot of blaster fire, at close range, spun Xin on the spot before he stumbled to one knee. Cass’ second shot had landed not far from the first; neither would be deadly, so long as someone cleaned out the wounds, but she guessed they hurt like hell. Good. The stuck-up bastard deserved it. No doubt there’d be some sort of repercussions. Cass had fought duels before, but never in ‘noble’ company and usually in the backroom of a badly lit cantina or an abandoned hangar in a space-port. House Teraan certainly didn’t have the sway (yet) to get her out of trouble and House Organa had apparently made it clear that they had washed their hands of the duel despite their oath of sanctuary for Lenn and his sister. As soon as this was over, she send a holocall to Risha, telling her to have the _Illiad_ ready to fly.

“Stop!” As Cass stepped forward, not sure if she was going to shoot again or offer some false apology, the brave and noble Xin Balish raised his hands in the universal sign for surrender. “Stop, blast you, the duel is ended!” He spat, staring at his own blood-soaked hands as though he’d never seen his own blood before. Perhaps he never had. “You win!”

“Leave House Teraan alone.”

Forcing her expression to remain neutral, Cass holstered her blaster, stepped over Xin’s body and placed her hand on Lenn’s shoulder as she looked down at the duelist. Her grip tightened just slightly, reassuring both Lenn and herself that this was over, for now. Xin stared pointedly at her hand, and then at Lenn’s face, taking note - Cass was sure - of the way that Lenn watched her. All of a sudden she remembered Lenn’s reputation as a womanizer, and had to remind herself not to blush, or to step away from him. Sniffing dismissively, Xin pulled himself to his feet and swept his lapels to cover the bloodstain on his clothes.

“I believe you’ve made your point.” He made for the door, still held open by the astounded twilek, before stopping just short of the rug to add: “I can’t believe you shot me without waiting for the duel to start. Twice!”

Cass watched the man disappear around the corner before allowing her muscles to relax, resting her head against Lenn’s neck with a weary, all-too-familiar sigh.

“Good riddance to bad rubbish.” The noble muttered under his breath, laughing nervously as he pushed his bangs off his forehead and let out a breath that Cass hadn’t realised he’d been holding in. “Though I can’t help but feel that’s going to come and bite us in the arse later on.”

“Arse?” The colloquialism shocked Cass out of her reverie and she raised an eyebrow, sharing a grin with Lenn.

Lenn blushed, rubbing the back of his neck. “It appears you’re rubbing off on me already. My dear lady.” He turned to look at Cass, a strange expression on his face. “I do believe you just shot a man for me.”

Cass tread carefully. Lenn was Alderaan nobility. Just how would he take her behaviour? There was only so long that her ‘rugged charm’ would work for her, she was sure. But against all odds, Lenn just shook his head slowly, a gentle smile on his face as he pressed his palm against her burning cheek. His touch was cool - if a little damp, from stress she supposed - and eased the sting from the slap. He massaged her cheek with his thumb, studying her intently, before chuckling to himself and closing his eyes with a sigh.

“I shall have to flee Alderaan, I suppose.”

Cass blinked. “That’s a bit… extreme.”

Lenn shook his head. “House Balish will just send another assassin, and I cannot rely on you to fight my fights for me every time I need you. Unless…”

Cass gave him a rueful smile. “I can’t stay on Alderaan.”

“No, I didn’t think so.” Lenn glanced around the open room, and then up at the gilded, chandeliered ceiling. He pulled Cass close, and for the first time in a long time, she didn’t resist. “And I had _such_ a delightful banquet planned. Three courses, musicians…”

“I would hate to let the band down…”

Cass craned her neck and Lenn pulled her closer, pressing a quick, chaste kiss to her forehead. He was still shaking, she noticed with some surprise, but keeping - what would he have called it, a stiff upper lip? Perhaps a banquet would do him good, and if he needed to leave Alderaan in a hurry well then, so did she.

“And what is this banquet in honour of?”

Lenn laughed, then, a loud and honest sound, as he held Cass at arms length.

“You, of course.”


End file.
